I am very proud to report that Nashville voters defeated the so-called "English-Only" charter amendment. I am so impressed by the number of people who stood up to fight against hatred. Below is an excerpt from a Tennessean newspaper article this morning.
Nashville listened to its leaders — the governor, the mayor, and a vast coalition of churches, businesses and universities — and defeated an English-only measure by nearly 10,000 votes in Thursday's special election.
No one predicted the massive turnout on the special election, one that inspired strong emotion from voters on either side. Ultimately, opponents said, the message that diversity is a good thing came through.
"With the defeat of this amendment, the citizens of Nashville tell the rest of the country that we are an incredibly warm city with an entrepreneurial spirit," said Tom Oreck, a vacuum cleaner company owner who worked to defeat the measure.
The final was 32,144 for English only and 41,752 against — at about 19 percent, the largest turnout for a special election in a decade.
The measure would have forced all Metro Nashville government business to be done in English, with the council allowed to vote on exceptions. The city's legal department contended early on that conflicts with federal law would enmesh Nashville in litigation for years to come.
By defeating the measure, Nashville will not be the largest city in the nation with an English-only rule in its charter despite dogged efforts by Metro Councilman Eric Crafton, who spearheaded the amendment. The city's size attracted the attention of national media.
After the final tallies, Mayor Karl Dean also called for the city to move on from this chapter.
"The results of this special election reaffirm Nashville's identity as a welcoming and friendly city and our ability to come together as a community — from all walks of life and perspectives — to work together for a common cause for the good of our city," he said.
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